


Gallant Knight

by Smokedcapybara



Series: (Apprentice) Park Ranger Handsome [4]
Category: Dear Evan Hansen - Pasek & Paul/Levenson
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-01-13
Updated: 2019-01-13
Packaged: 2019-10-09 18:34:29
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,088
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17412071
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Smokedcapybara/pseuds/Smokedcapybara
Summary: Connor’s back on the log, sketching everything around him on friday and it feels weird, like he’s breaking routine and what if Hansen doesn’t want him here today. Which is stupid cause Hansen had said he did. Want Connor there.





	Gallant Knight

Connor’s back on the log, sketching everything around him on friday and it feels weird, like he’s breaking routine and what if Hansen doesn’t want him here today. Which is stupid cause Hansen had said he did. Want Connor there.

But that was before Connor called him handsome and what if he actually _had_ heard and was uncomfortable and didn’t want Connor to come back and-

So he was sitting on his log, sketching, and trying not to freak out about calling his first friend in years handsome. And cute, he’d called him that too. Out loud. To his face.

He didn’t have long to stew in his worry before Hansen rounded a bend in the trail and ran toward him, beaming. He stopped just in front of Connor, his hands on his knees while he caught his breath.

It almost seemed like he’d rushed through the whole path to speed up seeing Connor again, which was… well. It was nice.

Which actually means that Connor felt stupidly giddy and his heart was racing as if _he’d_ been the one to rush through The Torture Trail and he could feel himself blushing like some damsel being wooed by a gallant knight.

“You came.” Hansen breathed, “I-I-I mean-I-you-I just-um-that-you-” he sighed and sat down before smiling up at Connor again, “I’m glad.”

And now instead of freaking out, Connor was fighting the need to hold him and kiss him and tell him he’d always come. Which was ridiculous cause he’d only really known Hansen for a couple weeks now but, well, anything to keep that smile on his face.

“Of course I did.” he said instead, smiling back down at Hansen.

After a minute of just sitting there while Hansen blushed and tried to stutter his way through a reply Connor pointed at a tree down the path. “What can you tell me about that tree?”

And as Hansen rambled about the tree’s species, Connor turned and leaned back against his tree and sketched.

Originally he was sketching the tree behind Hansen but somehow that turned into background for Hansen’s hair and the curve of his face and the way his eyes gleamed and the little curl in the corners of his lips. And then he was adding _armor_ to the picture of Hansen slowly coming to life on his page, cause _why not_.

It was nice. Peaceful. Hansen talking about trees and Connor sketching.

“What’re you drawing?”

Connor froze.

“I-I-I-I mean, yo-you don’t have to answer that or-or show me or anything. S-s-sorry.”

Connor wasn’t thinking, that’s the only explanation he had for what he did. Hansen was frowning and he’d been consumed by the need to _make it stop_. So he thrust his sketchbook at him, blushing.

“Oh.” Hansen breathed, eyes wide. “Oh. I-I-this-you-um - I-uh-I don’t… _I look like that_?”

Connor felt himself tense. “Like what?”

“L-like... I don’t-I can’t - t-t-there’s _no way_ I’m that pretty.”

Connor relaxed at Hansen’s perplexed expression.

“Of course you are.” he responded lightly, “you’re my prettiest friend.”

It got the desired laugh out of Hansen and then they were moving past how pretty Connor drew him and saw him.

“Why am I wearing armor?”

Connor snorted. “Cause you’re a knight, I don’t know.”

Suddenly Hansen was shooting him a small, sly smile. “If I’m a knight, are you the king?”

“I dunno, planning on calling me ‘Your Majesty’?”

“Definitely.”

They grinned at each other for a minute before falling into laughter. Connor tried not to imagine Hansen breathing ‘Your Majesty’ or ‘my King’ between kisses.

He was largely unsuccessful.

And now he was just thinking about Hansen whispering ‘mine’ across his skin and that was really not what he needed to be thinking of when just hanging out with his _friend_.

“What’s your favorite place you’ve ever been to?”

Connor startled, nearly falling off the log.

“S-sorry.” Hansen winced.

“No, it’s ok, I was kinda lost in my head. What was the question?”

“What-um-what’s your favorite place you’ve ev-ever been to?” Hansen fidgeted a little, looking away, “like, mine is this place. Cause th-the trees. And there’s less people to embarrass myself in front of and-” he glanced back at Connor for a second, “a-and stuff.”

Connor took a moment to think. It’d been a long time since he’d had a place that was just positive, most of them were overshadowed by bad memories. But he didn’t want to tell Hansen that, he wanted this to be a happy conversation. He could only think of two places that were still Good. And, he realized with a small grin, one of them was perfect to share with Hansen.

“Autumn Smile Apple Orchard.” He tilted his head back against his tree. “My family and I used to go there all the time before it closed.”

Closing his eyes, he described what it had looked like back then and shared stories from his family’s visits.

At first he was just reliving the days when his family had been happy and whole. But then he found himself telling about when he’d climbed the fence the year before and how the place had looked - all overgrown, with apples everywhere, but the trees still mostly in their orderly rows - and he started picturing himself taking Hansen there and the look that would be on his face as he took it all in. The wonder and joy and just - Hansen would love it there.

He wasn’t sure when he decided to, but when he finished telling Hansen all about it he looked back down at him and said, “We should go there sometime. The two of us.”

A blush spread across Hansen’s face and his eyes seemed to water despite his honest smile as he nodded fervently. “I-I-I’d l-like that.”

“Good. Great.” Connor grinned and sat up. “I should probably start heading back home, sadly. My mom said she wanted to do some, I don’t know,” he waved a hand through the air carelessly, “something as a family. Whatever it is it’s doomed to be a disaster.”

“Oh. I-um should get back to work then?”

“Right.” Connor stood and stretched. “I’ll see you monday.”

“Wait!” Connor turned back to Hansen to see him holding his sketchbook out towards him. “D-don’t forget this.”

Flashing Hansen a quick smile, he took it back. “Of course. Thanks.” He said softly before heading back down the trail.

His mom’s ‘family outing’ turned out to not be a disaster. He blamed the fact that he was too distracted to get upset at anything.


End file.
